Empathy
by FullMetalPrincess
Summary: Kurama and Hiei have always been friends, but one day Kurama takes it too far. Eventual HieiKurama. Yaoi.
1. Personal Space

**Well, all I really have to say is that this is my first YYH fanfiction, but please, don't spare me the flames. I need to know what you think, even if you think that I should burn in hell for writing this. To be honest, I stopped watching YYH when I was about 8 so, if the characters are OOC, I apologize. Kurama is especially OOC. And before I start...If any one cares, I made a playlist grins **

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THE PLAYLIST:

Down-Blink 182

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Honest Questions-Daniel Bedingfield

**Pressing on- Relient K**

**Smile-Nat King Cole**

**Pain-Jimmy Eat World**

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**Disclaimer:I do not own YYH, because, if I did, Kurama and Hiei would be gay, Kazuma would be a super-hero and Yusuke's attack wouldn't be so lame. Oh, and their pants wouldn't rise up to their chests, either!**

**Now that that's been said...ON WITH THE STORY! **

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Hiei sat, shirtless, on the railing of his friend's balcony. He just stared blankly at the evening sky. The glass door slid open and Kurama's fiery red head popped out.

"Hiei, hello."

"Hn." Kurama smiled, joining his best friend on the balcony. He leaned against the rail and looked down at the rose bushes below.

They were brown and bud-less, now, as it was mid-winter. Ice coated everything, making the world around them look fragile and glass-like. It had rained the night before, and everything had frozen over in the chilling shower.

Kurama glanced at Hiei and was suddenly aware of the small ice crystals hanging to the ends of his ebony hair. He'd been caught in the rain.

"Stop that." Hiei muttered, still gazing off into the distance. Kurama snapped out of his reverie.

"Stop what?"

Hiei glared out of the corner of his eye, "Gawking at me."

"I was just thinking that you looked cold."

"Cold?" The demon repeated, "I don't get cold." Kurama chose not to reply, but instead gave the shorter demon a tiny grin.

Darkness was quickly descending over the town, like a scene from a painting. When the sky was dotted with stars, dull from gazes, and the night turned colder, Kurama looked to his companion.

"I'm going to go inside now," he opened the glass door, "you're welcome to stay the night, if you so choose." He went into the house, but left the door open in case Hiei wanted to join him.

The red head started for his room. On his way, he stuck his head into his mother's room. She was sound asleep; her frail body moved up and down with her deep, rhythmic breathing. Kurama smiled softly to himself.

He set off for his bedroom, only to find Hiei plucking icicles from his hair. Kurama grabbed his wrist.

"You'll pull your hair out if you keep being so vicious about it." He responded when Hiei frowned at his action, "Let me help you." Hiei tugged his hand away sharply.

"I don't need your help, Fox." He began to rip at the icicles again, until Kurama grasped his hand once more.

"You can't do everything on your own," The sly fox insisted, "Please, Hiei, let me help you." With one last look of defiance, Hiei relented, and Kurama lead him to the bed.

Kurama sat down on the edge of the bed, knees spread wide, and pushed Hiei to sit between them. Kurama began to gently pick and pull at the ice crystals. Soon enough, Kurama was finished, but he never took his hand from Hiei's silky black hair. He just kept playing with it, twisting it around his fingers, running his hand through it, stroking it.

"Fox." Hiei said when Kurama didn't remove his hand from his head.

"Hiei."

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Nothing." The foxy boy said, quite blissfully. He buried his face into the soft dark mass that was Hiei's hair. Hiei stiffened.

"Fox…!" He growled. Kurama chuckled and kissed the back of the raven-head's neck. Hiei shivered, so he did it again, and twice more.

"Fox, I'm warning you…!" Kurama merely laughed, his hot breath hit the nape of Hiei's neck, making him inhale harshly. He snarled as Kurama kissed his shoulder blade. A head of bright red hair rested in the crook of his neck, and hands made their way up and down his arms.

Suddenly, Hiei jumped up, bolted to the other side of the room, and eyed Kurama guardedly.

"Hiei?" Kurama questioned quietly with a look of both curiosity and hurt in his green eyes.

"I cannot do this…"

"What…?"

"I cannot _love_…I cannot _love_ a _man_…" Hiei said as he shook his head slowly left and right. Kurama held a stricken expression: eyes wide and mouth agape. At last, Kurama found some words to say,

"I…don't understand." Hiei regarded him coldly.

"You don't have to, Fox." And, with that, he left.

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**There you have it, the first chapter of Empathy. Let me know how you liked it, and, depending on the responses, I'll post another chapter. Thanks for reading! smiles**

**-Tekii no aru tenshi-**


	2. Without Words

**Okay, so I was a liiitle lazy getting this up...okay, I was really lazy getting this up. But it's up now, and that's what matters! I got some good reviews, and I'm happy. **

**Diclaimer:If I owned YYH, Keiko would chew huge amounts of bubble gum and periodicly stick it in Yusuke's hair. But she doesn't do that, now does she?**

**PLAYLIST**

**_This is a lie_ by The Cure**

**_Tonight_ by Lostprophets**

**_Life less_ _frightening_ by Rise Against**

**_Top of the world_ by The All-American Rejects**

**_Color blind_ by Say Anything**

**_Say anything else_ by Cartel**

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Yusuke flicked a stone into the pond and watched the koi fish scatter, "So, you ran away, huh?"

"I couldn't bear to stay with him anymore." Hiei began to shred pieces of grass.

"Pfft," Yusuke snorted, "Homophobic, Hiei?" Hiei gritted his teeth at Yusuke's taunt.

"No."

"Then why'd you run away?"

"That fox was coming on to me, what the hell was I supposed to do?!" Hiei yelled at his friend.

"Tell him you're not a faggot." Yusuke answered simply, tossing another stone into the koi pond. Hiei bristled.

"A faggot?" He said softly, "is that what Kurama is now?" Yusuke laid on his back and closed his eyes.

"Yep." They sat there for a while more, until Yusuke got up and stretched, "Well, I'm going home. See ya, Hiei!" Hiei gave no reply.

As time went by, the sun only shone brighter. It was probably noon, but Hiei didn't care. He looked at his distorted reflection in the pond with distaste.

'_A faggot…' _Hiei thought, _'I almost let him…does this mean…I'm gay? What the hell is going on? Stupid fox, getting me into this.'_ He crushed a rock between his fingers. He thought back to the night before, when Kurama had pulled the icicles from his hair, and how he'd trusted him to do so. _"Let me help you." _He said, _"You can't do everything on your own." _He said.

"I don't need him," Hiei whispered to his reflection, "I don't need anyone."

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"Suuichi? Are you awake, Darling?" Kurama heard his mother call for him. "It's almost time for school."

"I'm not going." He answered, "I feel ill." It was true, the events of the night before made him sick with heartbreak.

"If you're sure…" She paused, "Is there anything I can bring you?"

"No." Kurama laid his head on his pillow, "I just need some sleep is all." Shiori walked away into the kitchen as her son fell into a light sleep.

Kurama awoke with a start. He'd had a nightmare, but he couldn't recall what had frightened him. He took some deep breaths and thought about nice things. Roses-roses were nice.

Love. Love was nice, too.

Hiei. Hiei wasn't nice. Hiei was ruthless. Hiei was cold. Hiei was loyal. Hiei was strong. Kurama shook his head to clear his mind. He placed a hand to his forehead and closed his eyes slowly. Hiei's face flashed across his mind.

'_Hiei,' _Kurama thought,_ 'Do you hate me now? Did I ruin everything? Did I betray your trust? … Did I scare you away?' _

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"Really?"

"That's what Hiei said." Yusuke smirked. Kuwabara's eyes widened to the size of his fists.

"So Kurama is really-"

"A faggot? Yeah." Kuwabara grimaced slightly.

"I'll…see you later, Urameshi." Yusuke waved a hand in dismissal, and Kuwabara jogged off down the street.

'_Kurama.' _He thought, as he walked down the street._ 'You idiot…falling for Hiei of all people. What the hell were you thinking?' _He looked up at the house in front of him. He knocked on the door. Shiori opened it a few moments later. All she said was "Suuichi is in his room." And left him to his business. Kuwabara barged into Kurama's bedroom with no hesitation (or warning, for that matter).

"Is what Urameshi said true?!" Kurama slowly sat up on his bed to look at his random visitor.

"Please, quiet down, Kuwabara. You might scare my mother."

"Not until I hear exactly what's going on!" The half demon sighed and beckoned Kuwabara with a small hand motion.

"Close the door. I'll tell you." He did as told and faced Kurama.

"What do you know?"

"Basically that you came on to Hiei and he brutally rejected you withy no explanation."

"All true…except for the part about no explanations." Kurama closed his eyes, letting the dreaded memories return to his mind, "Right before he left, Hiei told me…that he couldn't love a man…"

"Uh, that means he's not gay."

"That's what I don't understand."

"What don't you get? Sorry, buddy, but Hiei. Is. Not. Gay. Simple as that." Kuwabara said to the not-listening Kurama.

"He almost…"The fox demon trailed off. Kuwabara, who was now very confused, twisted his face into one of examination. Clearly, Kurama was no longer paying any attention to his friend. Even Kuwabara could figure out that much.

"He almost gave in…" Kurama mumbled to himself, "Almost…" Kuwabara turned, and without another word, left the vicinity with a new destination in mind.

He kept walking until he spotted Hiei's smallish figure leaning on a picket fence.

"Hiei." He called out. He merely met him with a dark look.

"Are you here to harass me about last night?" Kuwabara shook his head.

"No. I just wanted to know what you're gonna do." Hiei glared at the orange haired man.

"Obviously, I can't stay here,"

"So, you're leaving?"

"Yes, I'm leaving, you idiot. There's no reason for me to stay here." Dumbly, Kuwabara squinted at Hiei, as if that would make things more clear. "Kurama is no longer on friendly terms with us…by us, I mean Yusuke and myself; I don't know where you stand in all of this."

"Wait. You're not gonna be Kurama's friend anymore?" Hiei gritted his teeth.

"No. I'm not going to be his friend anymore."

You're going to ruin that friendship just because Kurama's gay? What the hell's wrong with you?"

"It has nothing to do with his sexual preference, but it has everything to do with his choice of interest," The fire demon stood straight and looked Kuwabara in the eye, "Me, Kuwabara. Why, out of all the other men in the three worlds, did he have to want _me_?" The taller man had no answer for him, "…why did you want to know this? Why do you care so much?"

"I care because you and Kurama are my friends. I just came back from seeing him..and…he's really out of it. I'm worried about him, Hiei. Maybe…maybe…you should go talk to him."

"Moron! Why would I go talk to someone I'm putting effort into avoiding?"

"You ran away from him! I think you should apologize!" Hiei only shook his head in disbelief. Kuwabara just didn't understand.

"I ran from him because I couldn't stay in that room. I might have done something rash."

"I don't get it." Hiei sighed.

"No one does…think of it this way: What would you do if Yusuke just randomly kissed you?" Kuwabara looked disgusted.

"I'd probably beat the shit out of him!" The dark haired one nodded.

"Precisely. I left before I did something unreasonable; like beating him shitless, or killing him." Kuwabara grinned.

"Oh, I get it now!"

"Good, because I wasn't going to explain it again."

"I…still don't get why you're leaving though." Hiei looked at him with darkly shadowed eyes.

"If I leave, Kurama will eventually forget about me; if he can't forget, he can't heal."

"What will the rest of us do? What will Yusuke and I do? We'll be loosing a friend…" Kuwabara's eyes were sad.

"You two will be fine."

"You won't stay? …Kurama will be heartbroken..."

"I'm only doing this for his sake, Kazuma." Hiei whispered, staring at the distant lights of Kurama's house.

The clock tower sounded 6 o' clock. Kuwabara turned from Hiei and began trotting off towards his home, "I have to get home. I'm late for dinner. See you, Hiei." Hiei leaned back on the fence. He watched as the sun slowly sank behind the cherry blossoms. The periwinkle sky only seemed to mock his mood.

'_Kurama. Stupid fox. Can't you see what you've done? Look what you've caused for yourself. Did you really think everyone would accept this? Did you truly believe that I wouldn't reject you? You must have at least suspected that. Why did you have to do this to yourself, Kurama? To __**me**__?' _

And with the wind howling at his back, Hiei disappeared into the night.

**:Sighs: I finally got off my lazy ass and typed it. I hope you guys liked the chapter. Go ahead, click the pretty periwinle button and tell me what you thought. Thanks for reading.**

**-Tekii no aru tenshi**


	3. An Ugly Place

**I'm very sorry for not putting this up earier, I have no good excuses! I'm just very very very very lazy! It's a short chapter, but it's something. The next one will be longer. Promise.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own YYH because if I did, all the characters would be stick figures with yarn for hair.**

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**PLAYLIST!**

**Lonely Day by System Of A Down**

**Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd**

**Breathe Me by** **Sia**

**Through the Glass by Stone Sour**

**All Is Numb by 32 Leaves**

**Furious Angels by Rob Dougan**

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The early song of a robin floated softly to Kurama's ears, but he couldn't enjoy it. What use was a beautiful song when you were in an ugly place?

He rose from his bed, his limbs were heavy with the weight of depression and his head pounded with the constant replay of that night. _'I cannot fall in love…not with another man…' _He shivered with the memory. He clambered into the shower, his actions on autopilot. He didn't even notice the water was cold. He dressed himself and shrugged on a jacket, all in a haze. He called out to Shiori, "I'm going to school, mother."

"Have a nice day, Suuichi!" He walked out the door into the biting cold, but the wind didn't sting nearly like the voice in the back of his mind. _Liar_, it hissed, _you're a liar_. Kurama swallowed back the urge to turn back around and walked forward. Down the walkway, through the lot, across the street, behind the tea shop. He didn't know where to go. _'Anywhere but here.' _He told himself.

Anywhere ended up being the roof of the school. It was quiet up there, with nothing but the open sky and the distant hum of kids wandering about below. He slid down the wall, submersing himself into a darkly shadowed corner. When he looked all around him, the world looked bright and wonderful, except for his corner. It was gray and empty, and that was exactly the way he felt.

It was a bright, cold day, but Kurama didn't feel the sun burning his eyes, nor did he feel the chill of the air. He did, however, feel the ice in Yusuke's voice when he said his name,

"Kurama."

"Yusuke. What are you doing here?"

"This is where I go to school, dumbass." Kurama nodded, seeming to ignore the insult. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Looking for Hiei," Kurama's emerald eyes were wide with desperation and hope, "Have you seen him?"

"Not since you tried to shove your dick up his ass." Yusuke smirked as Kurama blanched. "Yeah, he told me all about how you feeling him up and sucking his neck. Damn weird way to come out of the closet, Kurama." Kurama tried to back away, but he was still against the wall.

"That's not what happened!" Feelings came rushing out of no where: guilt, shame, sadness, rejection. All the emotion was making him dizzy, and he wished he felt numb again.

"Oh, it's not?" Yusuke continued his taunting with a sarcastic, accusing tone, "So, you _didn't_ lure him into your room? And you _didn't_ pick the ice out of his hair-"

"Any friend would have-" Kurama tried to interject, but Yusuke continued, louder and more belittling than before.

"-And you _didn't_ keep touching him when the ice was out? And you _didn't_ start kissing-"

"Okay! That's enough!" Kurama put his head between his knees. His voice sounded bigger than he felt, "Yes, I did all of that. But-but, we all have urges, you know how it is, right? Yusuke?"

"No," Yusuke spit, "I don't know how it is. I'm not like you. _**Faggot**_."

His last insult rang in Kurama's head like a gunshot. The redhead rose from the cement and stumbled for the door to the stairs. Yusuke watched him go, arms folded smugly across his chest.

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Hiei's eyes burned as he jumped building to building. The late afternoon sun hung on the edge of the horizon, waiting for the dark blue of twilight to push it down. The decadent smell of food forced its way into Hiei's nostrils, and his stomach clenched. He had not stopped for rest or a meal to eat since he left. He jumped from the room to an alley behind the restaurant, landing with the grace of a cat. Sliding open the door, he strode in. He quietly placed money on the counter and ordered tea and a dish of rice.

While he waited, he couldn't help but note that his legs ached with a firey vengeance from running so far and so long. He stretched them out onto the seat opposite him and cracked his neck. Soon enough, his rice and tea were put in front of him and he dug in.

Hiei finished his meal in silent content, then pushed himself off the seat and out the door. It was, he noticed as he closed the door behind him, colder outside than it was before, and darker too. Not that it mattered to him.

"That's funny, I never knew leaving a restaurant could look so much like running away." Hiei spun swiftly to face the speaker, and immediately exhaled, exasperated.

"What the hell are you doing here, Kuwabara?" The ginger beamed.

"I'm here to bring you back!" Hiei cocked an eyebrow.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah! Hiei, Kurama is falling apart, Yusuke is meaner than ever and I don't have anyone to hang out with now! We need you back!" Kuwabara's grin widened confidently, sure he'd somehow managed to convince Hiei to come back. Hiei just glowered at him.

"You don't really think that, after I came all this way, your jumbled trash heap of a reason will make me change my mind and come back with you, do you?"

"Um," Kuwabara's smile stayed put, "Yeah, I was hoping for that."

"Well you can stop hoping," Hiei shot smoothly, "And you can wipe that shit eating grin off your face, because I'm not going."

"Well then, I'm not leaving!" The orange haired man snapped his back straight, as if good posture would make Hiei reconsider, "I'll stay with you until you're ready to come back!"

"What if I tell you I'm never coming back?"

"Then I'll stay."

"Why," Hiei questioned coldly, "would you ever do that?"

Kuwabara dropped his happy-go-lucky grin and looked at Hiei, his brown eyes locking seriously with Hiei's black ones.

"Because we're friends, and friends don't let friends run away- even if they want to run."

Hiei smirked, "I guess it's settled then."

Kuwabara smirked too, "I guess it is."

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**Well, there you have it, a new twist in the story. **

**Were you expecting that? Were you surprised? Let me know! Hit the nice rectangle and leave me a review. :) Thanks for reading, everyone!**


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